Thankful Today

I had a great weekend. It was delightfully busy, and filled with great friends and companions. My cup runneth over...

i hate this day

Who hit this button???? It's not just as bad, it's yesterday ALL OVER AGAIN. Ugh. Can someone rescue me, pleeeeeze?

Bittersweet Despair

I found this picture today. It spoke to me in terms of my feelings on a Wednesday, this hump day, if you will.

Needless to say, I'm anxious for tomorrow to get here.

Tuesday Tidbits

1. My inspiration for today, brought to you by Kermit the Frog. Thanks, Brian!
2. How many different meanings are there for this statement: "Focus on the outcome"? No, really...I need some feedback.
3. Everyone knows there is no number three.
4. It's raining today in Portland, and I'm dressed more for summer today than I was last week when it was over 100 degrees.
5. I've always hated Tuesdays, but today, I'm making an exception. Just because.
6. I need to exercise.
7. I'm looking forward to lunch with three different friends this week. Yay!
8. Is it Friday yet?
9. Why is it so hard to communicate feelings? Is it the vulnerability and/or risk?
10. Have you tried a Mojito Burrito yet??? You're so missing out, if you haven't.

One Life to Fret

This morning, I was thinking about the fact that my birthday is just around the corner. And, how I'll be turning 36. My first thought was negative - what have I accomplished in my 36 years, to speak of? However, my very next thought, which was on a more positive note, was - WOW! Look at all I have to be thankful for in my 36 years.

Which is more important, in the long run? If I wait around worrying and fretting about what I have and have not accomplished, I may waste my time not living. I choose to LIVE today, and every day...and be thankful.

Funny thing is, that's what the sermon was about at church yesterday. Mostly. :-)

Tracy vs. Stella

I'd say that I've done a whole lot of growing up in the past few years. Some of the changes I really like. Some of them not so much.

I kinda miss the old Tracy, at times. Even though there's so many parts about the new Tracy that I like, the part I especially miss is the assertive (sometimes aggressive)-don't take no guff-take control part. I really need to get that back. To use at my discretion, would be even better.

Must I go to Jamaica to get my groove back?

When Reality Slaps You In the Face

In a deep discussion with my mother about relationships and human behavior, I was talking with her about not wanting to come across too "needy". She was basically nodding in agreement, and trying to show me that she understood by restating what I'd said. But at the end she tacked on, "...even though you are."

Nothing against you, mama, I appreciate the truth. Always. Even when it stings.

Astronomical Prices

Gas is so freakin' expensive. I'm just sayin'.

So, I will take three huge steps to help myself conserve on the gas that I do have:

1. I will make a concerted effort to SLOW DOWN. Try to drive a steady pace, instead of so much race & stop, which is my normal practice.
2. I will try to keep my tires at a slightly elevated pressure than normally suggested.
3. I will drive with my windows up (and use air, if necessary).

Thanks to Brian for 2 and 3. I'm sure there are a lot more ways, but I can only bite off three at one time. Heck, number 1 is going to be hard enough for me to accomplish.

Pondering Soul

It's been awhile since I've posted. And, so much has happened. There's been so much happy, but with a little sad and disappointed mixed in, that it makes it hard to just remain "happy" for long.

I'm hoping that I can articulate my feelings about all this stuff at a later time, but for now...I'll just leave it at that.

Just Doing My Part...

When Hard Work and Hard Play Pay Off

I had an awesome weekend. Jam-packed, but truly awesome. First was a wonderful event for my business, which was so much fun! There were sales, prizes, yummy food, FUN, and creativity. We all had a blast! Then, I got to watch a movie and take a nap (two of my favorite pasttimes...yesssssssss!). And, to top a great day off, I was lucky enough to spend some quality time with a special someone that's inching his way into my heart.

On Sunday, I had a great time at church. I sang on the Worship Team (actually two different ones), which is always a blessing for me. Also, it was Baby Day, so we were celebrating the babies in the church. There was a special presentation with a slide show, and a song/dance featuring toddlers and other kids. Very heartwarming, indeed.

After church, I was blessed by spending time with my friend Angel (thank you Shali, for letting me steal him for the day). He wanted to do a photo shoot of me, and also encourage me to begin creating via my camera. I'm hoping hanging around him will help. He's come a long way in such a short time...he takes great pictures! I can't wait to learn more! You can see some of his work, as well as mine here.

All-in-all, an excellent weekend! And, it's continuing to be an awesome month of May.

Feelings on a Friday

Insatiable, anxious, excited, a little sleepy, and relieved.

Sweetness Overload

I'm officially marking this day on my virtual calendar: May 3, 2006.

I was introduced to sweetness overload, which literally brought tears of joy to my eyes. My daughter said this to me, with the most sincere feeling in her voice:

"I thank God that He gave me a mommy like you."

It just doesn't get much better than that, friends. Seriously.

May has started out to be a tremendous month, and it'll hopefully only get better with my Birthday coming up. One can hope. :-)

Woo-hoo!

Of course it's all about me....why?

In case you don't know this about me, there's not much I hate more than being late. To anything. I hate it when I'm late, I hate it when anyone else is late. It's one of those pet peeves that just grind on your last nerve, ya know?

My grandfather has been sick, and recently had surgery. He had an aneurism in his aorta that needed to be removed/broken up. Thank God and the doctors, he came through the surgery just fine. However, my dad has had to make several trips to California in the past few months to help him out. My dad normally watches my daughter before & after school, and when he's gone we have to rearrange things quite a bit to get her back and forth to school. This requires extra time to drop her off at my sister's house in the mornings, before heading in to work.

Now, you'd think, since I hate to be late so much, I'd be able to adjust my wake-up time, right? Um..no. It just doesn't work that way for some reason. So, I've been late. A lot. (Given the fact that I hate being late so much, a lot could be a minimal quantity, of course.)

Well, my dad's home (again, thank God he made it home safely), and I was going to arrive EARLY to work today. Notice I said was.

Turns out there was a fatal accident on McLaughlin Blvd. this morning, and I ended up being a couple minutes late instead. I feel really bad that this was a fatal accident, now...don't get me wrong. However, did you hear me say that I WAS GOING TO BE EARLY, and ended up late instead?? Ugh.

The Sweetest Kind of Bear.....SUGABEAR!

About 7-8 years ago, I lost touch with a dear, dear friend of mine. It was a tragic moment of letting myself be controlled by another human being that tore us apart. I never say never, but there's a first time for everything. NEVER again will I let that happen.

Anyhow, thanks to MySpace.com, I FOUND HIM! I couldn't be happier...and I mean that with every thread of my being.

Of all the negative things I've heard about MySpace (and I know there are many), this totally wipes them out....even just for today.

Yay. :-)

Sesame Street LIVE!

Boy, don't bother complaining about gas prices to this guy! He'll tell you like it is. Grouch! :-D

Who's Afraid of the Big, Bad Wolf?

A wolf in sheep’s clothing.

How does one spot this wolf? Are there signs? Red flags, if you will?

What if they’re REALLY GOOD at pretending to be sheep. They “baaaaa” well. I’m tellin’ ya…they sound astonishingly like a sheep. And, they even look astonishingly like a sheep.

How do you really know they’re a wolf until they bite you? Or, eat you, even.

One could argue that I should just know. It’s more obvious than I seem to think. However, when you really, really dig you some sheep, sometimes you’re easily fooled. Especially, when the sheep pretends to like you, and not merely want something from you. Even when you should probably know better, it still sounds good. To hear them “baaa” is nice. Sometimes.

Or, were they really dressed like a regular ol’ wolf, and because you wanted a sheep so bad, all you saw was the fluffy exterior of a sheep.

And, therefore, you have to assume responsibility because…after all, you should have seen it coming, right? Or, maybe you did…and dove in, head-first, anyway.

So you forge ahead, and somehow try to research a way to fix your broken wolf-detector. Again.

I Caught A Delicious Bass For You

This is the HUGE bass that my girly-girl caught mostly by herself on April 22nd, while with her daddy. He's a fisherman, at heart, and is teaching his daughter well....if I do say so myself.

Angels Among Us

Our trip to Lincoln City this past weekend was so much fun! It was just my baby-girl and me...and the time together was nice. One-on-one...all alone. We slept, we played, watched a little teevee, shopped (boy, did we shop), and went swimming. We even got in trouble because I let her go in the hot tub with me (please, no hate mail...not interested). It was great fun!

You can see more pictures here.